Italian competitor Sinner cautioned that Alex de Minaur “has little to forfeit” during their upcoming semi-final match.
Sinner successfully progressed to the semi-final stage without conceding either a set or a service game. This was achieved through demonstrating precise skill against Shelton, effectively converting two of his three opportunities to break-point within the initial set, and securing the win during the tie-break with his second match point.
Maintaining efficiency while serving throughout the entirety of the match, he prevented Shelton from capitalizing on his singular break point – meaning he has now defended all eight break points that he has encountered in Turin. He conceded a mere seven points across six service games within the second set.
The 24-year-old, whose ambition is to make a third successive appearance in the final match at the season’s conclusive tournament, holds a 12-0 record when competing against the seventh-seeded De Minaur. Despite this, he is reluctant to underrate the Australian player, who caused an upset by defeating Taylor Fritz to secure the second position within the Jimmy Connors Group.
“I’m very pleased for [De Minaur],” Sinner stated. “Credit to him for rebounding with such a strong performance [against Fritz]. It stands out as one of the finest matches I have observed him play.
“I must exercise significant caution – he has very little to forfeit. It is anticipated to be very challenging.”
Regarding the doubles matches, a 7-6 (7-5) 6-2 victory for Henry Patten and his Finnish teammate Harri Heliovaara against Marcelo Arevalo and Mate Pavic results in five British players advancing to the semi-finals – marking the highest number of players from a single nation since 1992.
British partners Joe Salisbury and Neal Skupski, having previously secured their qualification, sustained their unblemished record with a 7-5 6-3 victory against Christian Harrison and Evan King. They are now scheduled to compete against fellow British players and year-end number ones Julian Cash and Lloyd Glasspool in the upcoming semi-final round.
